1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a semiconductor device. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a memory device configured to be accessed without a block address.
2. Description of the Related Art
A semiconductor memory device is generally classified as a volatile memory device or a nonvolatile memory device. Read and write speeds of the volatile memory device are fast, but data stored therein disappear when power supply is discontinued. In contrast, the nonvolatile memory device retains data stored therein even though external power supply is discontinued. Therefore, the nonvolatile memory device is used to store information to be retained regardless of whether power is supplied. An example of the nonvolatile memory device is a flash memory that is used in portable electronic devices.
A nonvolatile memory device such as a flash memory may store firmware needed to drive or manage a storage device including the nonvolatile memory device. The firmware may be loaded onto a buffer memory such as a DRAM (dynamic random-access memory) as a boot code or separate firmware stored in a ROM (read only memory) of a controller to control the flash memory is executed. An addressing rule is needed for accessing a physical area where firmware is stored, upon loading the firmware from the nonvolatile memory device.
However, when manufacturers of the nonvolatile memory device and the controller that controls the nonvolatile memory device are different from each other, a problem may arise with regard to the addressing rule for loading the firmware. For example, an address of a memory block which stores firmware may vary for each manufacturer of nonvolatile memory devices. In this case, an area (i.e., an address of a memory block) where firmware is stored may be obtained by reading and parsing a separate ID supported by a nonvolatile memory device. However, it is difficult to satisfy addressing rules that vary for different manufacturers. In the case where the addressing rule changes with a manufacturer, performance and lifespan of products may be reduced. Accordingly, solutions such as those described herein are increasingly important.